Smoking implement



July '19, 1938. A. G. VAN DEVENTER SMOKING IMPLEMENT Filed April 5, 1937-SMOKE HAL Q HALF a 4 e, .1 a 2 r 3 m m 4% m g T 0 K g a 4 m Z fim fl m4 Patented July 19, 1938 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 4 Claims.

This application is a continuation-in-part of my co-pending application,Serial Number 80,912, filed May 20, 1936.

This invention relates to smoking implements and has to do moreespecially with cigar and cigarette holders and smoking pipes.

The primary object of this invention is to provide a cigar or cigaretteholder or pipe, as the case may be, having means for receiving andholding a supply of menthol crystals or other aromatic substance, thevapor of which is to be mixed, in variable proportions, with tobaccosmoke, which is susceptible of being easily adjusted, by and at the willof the user, to vary the proportions of the mixture of smoke andaromatic vapor.

A further object is to provide a device of the aforementioned characterwhich is inexpensive to manufacture and easy to keep clean.

The herein-described cigarette holders are, in a sense, designed tofunction as substitutes for mentholated cigarettes, and to enablecigarette smokers who prefer, occasionally or regularly, to smokementholated cigarettes, to choose any unmentholated brands they may wishand mentholate the smoke to any desired degree, or not at all.

In the accompanying drawing I have disclosed two alternative embodimentsof my invention, as applied to cigarette holders; and, in addition, Ihave shown a pipe constructed in accordance therewith.

Referring to the drawing:

Fig. 1 is a side elevational view, somewhat enlarged, of a cigar orcigarette holder;

Fig. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view taken along the line 2-2 of Fig.1;

Fig. 3 is a longitudinal sectional view similar to Fig. 2, but showingthe holder .difierently adjusted;

Figs. 4, 5 and 6 are cross-sectional views taken along the line I4 ofFig. 2 and the line 5--5 of Fig. 3.

Fig. 7 is a side elevational view, somewhat en larged, of an alternativedesign of cigar or cigarette holder;

Fig. 8 is a longitudinal sectional view taken along the line 88 of Fig.'7;

Fig. 9 is a longitudinal sectional view similar to Fig. 8, but in whichthe section through the stem portion of the holder is taken along adifferent plane so as to illustrate the menthol chamber;

Fig. 10 is a longitudinal sectional view taken along the line Il!-I ofFig. 8;

Figs. 11, 12 and 13 are cross-sectional views taken along the line II-IIof Fig. 8 and line I2-I2 of Fig. 9.

Fig. 14 is a view, partly in elevation and partly in section, of asmoking pipe equipped with a stem and bit in accordance with the presentinvention.

The cigarette holder depicted in Figs. 1 to 6, inclusive, comprises buttwo parts-a cylindrical stem I and a bit 2. These may, advantageously,be made of a non-combustible moulded plastic, such as bakelite. Parts Iand 2 are secured together frictionally and are easily separablethe bit2 having a cylindrical protuberance 3 which projects into and is a snugrunning fit in 15 a correspondingly cylindrical recess 4 in the stem.The last-mentioned recess is of considerable depth and is designed tofunction as a receptacle for an aromatic vapor-producingsubstance-general1y menthol crystals or cotton saturated with menthol.In Figs. 2 and 3 the recess 4 is shown loaded with menthol crystals. Anaperture 5 serves as a vent for recess 2, permitting air to be drawnthrough the receptacle, together with menthol vapor, whenever the holderis adjusted to produce an admixture of tobacco smoke and menthol vapor.

In the front end-portion of stem I there is formed a recess 6 of a sizeand shape suitable to receive the end of a cigarette, or a cigar, if theholder be made for use with cigars. A passageway -'I of small diameterextends from the rear of recess 6, makes a right angle turn at 8 andterminates in a port 9 in the side wall of recess I. Passageway Ifunctions as a conduit for '35 smoke.

The bit 2 has a bore II! of small diameter which makes a right angleturn at II and opens at one side of protuberance 3 into a slot I2, whichis most adequately shown in Figs. 4, 5 and 6.

The stem and bit are relatively rotatable and the arrangement is suchthat the bore It? can be brought into communication, alternately and atwill, (1) with the smoke conduit I, only; (2) with the smoke conduit Iand the menthol-filled chamber 4, jointly; and (3) with thementholfilled chamber only-any desired ratio of menthol vapor to tobaccosmoke being obtainable by turning the bit a proportionate amount.

A passageway I3, formed in the stem I, provides communication betweenthe menthol-filled chamber and the bore IEI by way of slot I2.

The construction is analogous to that of a three-way rotary valvewherein the rear end of stem I constitutes the valve body and theprotuberance 3 the valve plug-the valve body having two ports inquadrature and the plug having one port wide enough to overlap both bodyports and capable of being put into registration with either or bothbody ports at will.

In the cross-sectional view, Fig. 4, the bit and stem are shown in thatposition of relative adjustment wherein the port opening of the bit-boreI0 is in registration solely with passageway I. With that adjustment thesmoker will receive only smoke. The adjustment depicted in Fig. 5 placesthe bit-bore in communication solely with the menthol chamber, thesmoker receiving menthol vapor only. Fig. 6 depicts the adjustmentwherein the bit-bore port slot I2 is in registration with the ports ofboth passageways l and I3, the smoker receiving a mixture ofapproximately equal parts of menthol vapor and tobacco smoke. Byrotating the bit one way or the other from the position shown in Fig. 6,the ratio of menthol vapor to smoke can be varied to suit the taste ofthe smoker, as will be apparent.

The cigarette holder of Figs. 7 to 13, inclusive is the same inprinciple and mode of operation as that of Figs. 1 to 6, inclusive; butit diiTers therefrom structurally and is an improvement over thefirst-described holder in that it is more simple to manufacture andeasier to clean.

The holder of Figs. '7 to 13 comprises a stem l4 and a bit l5corresponding, respectively, to the stem I and bit 2 of the previouslydescribed holder. As shown in Fig. 7, the exterior surface of the stemhas three indicia marks, beside which are engraved, respectively, thewords Smoke, Half & Half and Menthol. On the bit is engraved an arrow incontraposition to the aforementioned marks on the stem and adapted to berought into registration therewith selectively. By turning the bitrelatively to the stem, so as to bring the arrow into registration withthe mark labeled Smoke, the holder is adjusted for an unmentholatedsmoke. Rotating the bit so as to bring the arrow into registration withthe mark labeled Half & Half adjusts the holder for an equal orapproximately equal mixture of smoke and menthol vapor. Rotating the bitso as to bring the arrow into registration with the mark labeled Mentholadjusts the holder so that the user receives menthol vapor only.

The front end of stem M has a recess l6 corresponding to recess 6 of thepreviously described holder, and a smoke passageway ll of small diameter extending from the bottom of recess l 6 to the bottom of acylindrical recess I8, into which is fitted the cylindrical protuberancel9 constituting an integral part of bit l5. The end surface ofprotuberance l9 bears against the bottom surface of recess l3; and agroove 20 formed in and extending diametrically across the end ofprotuberance l9 intersects bore 2i and serves as a conduit for mentholvapor from chamber 22, formed in the stem, and for smoke from passagewayI? to bore 2|. A small aperture 23 functions as a vent for chamber 22,enabling a stream of air to be sucked through the chamber.

The cross-sectional views, Figs. 11, 12 and 13, illustrate very clearlythe relative positions of passageway l1, groove 2! bore 2| and chamber22; and these latter views show at a glance what happens when the bit isturned relatively to the stem. In Fig. 11 the groove 29 is inregistration with passageway l'l, exclusively, being completely out ofcommunication with passageway H. In Fig. 13, groove 20 is shown inregistration with both passageway I l and chamber 22, while in Fig. 12it is shown in registration with only chamber 22, being completely outof communication with passageway I1. Manifestly, the adjustment of Fig.11 is for smoke only; the adjustment of Fig. 12 for menthol only; andthe adjustment of Fig. 13 for a mixture of smoke and menthol vapor. Anincrease in the overlap between groove 20 and the port opening ofpassageway I1 is accompanied by a decrease in the overlap between groove20 and the open end of chamber 22, and vice versa. Obviously, theapportionment of smoke and menthol vapor varies with the relative sizesof the apertures through which the smoke and vapor must pass to gainentry to groove 20 and bore 2|.

The stem and bit of the pipe illustrated in Fig. 14 is of the samedesign and construction as the cigarette holder of Figs. '7 to 13,inclusive, and, therefore, requires no further description.

Since the passageway I1 and bore 2| of the holder of Figs. 7 to 13extend straight through, that device, obviously, is easier to clean thanthe holder of Figs. 1 to 6; and it is considerably more economical tomanufacture because of that feature.

What is claimed is:

1. A smoking implement comprising a stem having a recess at one end,said stem having a smoke conduit extending lengthwise thereof, saidconduit terminating in said recess at a point laterally offset from thelongitudinal axis of said stem, a chamber in said stem for the receptionof a vapor-producing substance, said chamber being in communication withsaid recess, and a bit having a protuberance at one end projecting intosaid recess and forming a closure therefore, said bit having a boreextending longitudinally therethrough, and a passageway operative toconnect said bore with said conduit and said chamber, jointly andseverally.

2. A smoking implement comprising a stem and a bit, said stem and bitbeing relatively rotatable and forming, conjointly, a three-way rotaryvalve, said stem having a conduit terminating in one port of said valve,said stem having a chamber for the reception of vapor-producingsubstance, said chamber being in communication With a second port ofsaid valve, said bit having a bore terminating in a third port of saidvalve, said third port being adapted to be moved into registration withsaid first and second ports individually and jointly at the will of theuser.

3. The combination of a stem having a recess at one end, and a bithaving a protuberance extending into said recess and functioning as aclosure for said recess, said protuberance being rotatable in saidrecess, a smoke conduit extending longitudinally through said stem andterminating at one side of said recess at a port adjacent the side ofsaid protuberance, said bit having a bore extending longitudinallythereof and a lateral passageway extending from said bore to a port onthe side of said protuberance, said lastmentioned port being so situatedas to be capable of being brought into registration with saidfirstmentioned port, upon said bit being rotated relatively to saidstem, said recess forming a chamber for the reception of vapor-producingsubstance, said stem having a groove formed in the side of said recess,said groove extending along the side of said protuberance and beingadapted to function as a conduit for vapor from said chamber to saidbore, the arrangement being such that, by rotating said bit relativelyto said stem, said second-mentioned port can be moved into registrationwith either or both said first-mentioned port and said groove.

4. The combination in a smoking implement, of a stem having an axis ofrotation, said stem being adapted for connection to a source of tobaccosmoke, a circular recess in one end of said stem, said recess having anaxis coincident with that of said stem, said stern having a passagewayextending lengthwise therethrough and terminating at the bottom of saidrecess at a port laterally oifset from said axis of rotation, said stemhaving a chamber for the reception of vapor-producing substance, saidchamber opening into the bottom of said recess at a point laterallyoffset from said axis of rotation and angularly displaced from said.port, and a bit having a protuberance of circular cross-sectionextending into said recess and abutting the bottom of said recess, saidprotuberance constituting a closure for said recess, said bit having anaxis of rotation coincident with that of said stem and a bore extendinglengthwise therethrough, said protuberance having a groove extendingacross the end thereof which abuts the bottom of said recess, saidgroove intersecting said bore and adapted to function as a channel forboth smoke and vapor.

ALBERT G. VAN DEVENTER.

